Method for treating films arranged in strips



May 1933. A. v. c. DEBRIE ,907,252

METHOD FOR TREATING FILMS ARRANGED IN STR IPS Filed Dec. 20, 1929 Patented May 2, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ANDRE E'oN vro'ron CLEMENT DEBBIE, or rams, FRANCE METHOD FOR TREATING FILMS ARRANGED IN STRIPS Application filed December 20,-1929, Serial No. 415,580, and in France January 31, 1929.

cinematographic films and the like ar- D followed each by a washing vat W of the ranged in strips are generally developed, same size, a filmF (Fig. 1) which is properly fixed and dried in continuously working madeveloped after passing through a single chines wherein the difierent films secured todeveloper vat will pass out of said vat into 5 gether to form a continuous strip pass first the adjacent corresponding washing vat and through one or more vats containing the dethence into the following five washing vats. veloper and then in succession through the On the contrary a film F (Fig. 2) which is Washing vats, the fixing vats and lastly into properly developed only after passing the drying kiln. through all six developer vats will only pass Now the difierent films passing in succesthrough the last water vat. All the films will sion through the machine may require to be pass thus through seven vats which will be immersed during varying times of reaction according to requirements, one developer vat for a proper development and this causes and six water vats or two developer vats and some ditficulty in the working of the machine. five water vats and so on up to six developer My invention has for its object a method vats and one water vat. whereby each film or portion of film is al- Each film passing out of a developer vat lowed to pass through .the developing bath may be brought either into the adjacent waterduring the exact time required without it vat or into the next developer vat either by being necessary to change the speed of the hand or through semi-automatic or entirely strip containing the film nor to slow down automatic devices. TAny suitable inspecting or to accelerate the movement of the films means allows the state of development of the ahead of the film considered and still underfilm to be ascertained as it passes out of each going the developing process. It is neither developer bath. necessary to use intermediary strips between The above arrangement though particu- 2 the successive films nor to go into intricate larly intended for use in film development handling in the case of my invention. processes may also be used with advantage According to my said invention the defor other operations where the different films veloper is distributed between a certain numrequire treatments of different duration,-such her of short vats each of which is immedias dyeing and even for operations on bands ately followed by a vat full of water, bromideof any description. containing water or any suitable acidulated What I claim is: product adapted to wash the developed film A method for treating a plurality of films and to prevent any further action of the dearranged in a strip-consisting in passing said veloper. I strip continuously over a series of vats con- Each film passes first in as many developer taining alternately a developer and a washvats as may be required for its proper develing liquid, and extending loops of the strip, opment. When this is accomplished it passes invariable length, into that number of dethrough the washing vats ahead of the last veloper vats corresponding to the desired developer vat used. Obviously the total numdevelopment, and thereafter into such num- M berof vats whether developer vats or washber of washing vats that the totalnumber of ing vats, through which a film passes is'the extensions of the film into the two kinds 0 same for all the films. Thus each film is devats is a constant. v veloped to the required extent and the ma- In testimony whereof I have signed my chine works exactly as if the several films rename to this specification.

mained the same time in the dGVQIOpGI'. ANDRE LQONVICTOR CLEMENT magma Accompanying drawing gives a diagrammatic illustration of the invention, Figs. 1

and 2 showing the position of difierent films L of the same strip in the developer and washmo ing vats. The machine shown comprises vats 

